Block Chain and Digital Currency 2019-20 Module 1 (Fall 2019)

Announcements

• Homework #1 is posted.
• Our TA will give an introductory discussion of Java and IDE on 2019/9/12 Thursday from 9-11 AM at PHBS Room 513, the Finance Lab.
• Special thanks to Professor Riccardo Bettati, who kindly gives us permission to use his slides for this class. Here is the link to the slides page. As he noted in his course web site, these slides were inherited and modified from the original Princeton slides at Bitcoin and Cryptocurrency Technologies.
• Special thanks to Professor Jaehyuk Choi, who kindly provided the course materials that he used for his class!

Lectures:

• 01 (2019/9/2): Course Overview

  • lecture_1_notes
  • Check out the latest blocks mined at blockExplorer.
  • Reading assignment: Book 1.1-1.3, DeCal lecture 1-2

• 02 (2019/9/5): Introduction to Cryptography and Cryptocurrencies

  • data structure quiz questions and answers This quiz serves as a prerequisite exam. Minimum score for enrollment is 10 out of 17.

  • lecture_2_notes: SLIDES week #1.

  • Reading assignment: Book 1.4-1.5, 2.1-2.3, DeCal lecture 3

  • Further readings: Birthday problem，Merkle tree.

• 03 (2019/9/9): Introduction to Cryptocurrencies and Decentralization

  • lecture_3_notes: SLIDES week #2.
  • More on Merkle tree
  • Reading assignment: Book 2.4-2.5, chapter 3, DeCal lecture 7

• 04 (2019/9/12): Mechanics of Bitcoin

  • lecture_4_notes: SLIDES week #3.
  • Reading assignment: Book chapter 4

• 05 (2019/9/16): How to Store and Use Bitcoins

  • lecture_5_notes: SLIDES week #4.
  • Reading assignment: Book chapter 5

Homework:

• hw #0 Create your github repository (public) as www.github.com/YOUR_ID/PHBS_BlockChain_2019.
• hw #0.5 Check out the TA's introduction to Java and IDE and GitHub account
• hw #1 Transaction Handling due by 11:59 PM 2019/9/23.
  • Homework_1, Provided code.

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Syllabus

Classes:

• Lectures: Monday & Thursday 3:30 – 5:20 PM
• Location: PHBS Building, Room 335
• Office Hour: Room 649, Tuesday 9-11 AM

Teaching Assistance: Cong Fang

• Email: [email protected]
• Location: PHBS Building, Room 213
• Office Hour: Tuesday 3:30 - 5:20 PM, Thursday 8:30 - 10:20 AM

Textbooks and Reading Materials

• Blockchain at Berkeley, 2018 Fall (DeCal):
• Bitcoin and Cryptocurrency Technologies (Princeton textbook) by Narayanan, Bonneau, Felten, Miller, and Goldfeder (draft download): (BOOK)
• Special Topics in Cryptocurrency Technologies, Spring 2017, TAMU: (SLIDES)

Assessment / Grading Details

• Attendance 20%, Assignments 30%, Mid-term exam 30%, Final Project 20%
• Attendance: Randomly checked. The score is calculated as 20 – 2x(#of absence).